Google and other companies have brought voice command and recognition technology to new heights in the last few years, making it easier to imagine that such technology could constitute the user interface of the future, writes TechCrunch’s Frederic Lardinois.

The social awkwardness of speaking to an inanimate object may stall adoption, but just as awkwardness over using other technologies like video chats has subsided, it also may fade with voice commands, he argues.

Voice commands may indeed power the “ultimate personal assistant” and even “form the kernel of the artificial intelligence systems,” according to Lardinois.